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USGS1960

The geology and ground-water resources of Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana

Large quantities of fresh ground water are available in Calcasieu Parish. Fresh water is present in sand of Recent, Pleistocene, Pliocene, and Miocene ages, although locally only small supplies for rural or stock use can be obtained from the shallow sand lenses of Recent and Pleistocene ages. The principal fresh-water-bearing sands are the '200-foot,' '500-foot,' and '700-foot' sands of the Chicot aquifer of Pleistocene age, from which 105 million gallons is pumped daily. A yield of as much as 4,500 gpm (gallons per minute) has been obtained from a single well. The sands are typical of the Chicot aquifer throughout southwestern Louisiana in that generally they grade from fine sand at the top to coarse sand and gravel at the base of the aquifer. The coefficient of permeability of the principal sands in Calcasieu Parish ranges from 660 to about 2,000 gpd (gallons per day) per square foot and averages 1,200 gpd per square foot. The permeability of the sands generally varies with textural changes. The maximum depth of occurrence of fresh ground water in Calcasieu Parish ranges from about 700 feet to 2,500 feet below mean sea level; locally, however, where the sands overlie structures associated with oil fields, the maximum depth is less than 300 feet. Pumping has caused water levels to decline, at varying rates, in all the sands. In the '200-foot' sand they are declining at a rate of about 2 feet per year. In the industrial district of Calcasieu Parish, levels in the '500-foot' sand are declining at a rate of about 5 feet per year, and in the '700-foot' sand at a rate of about 3.5 feet per year. Salt-water contamination is accompanying the water-level decline in the '700-foot' sand in the central part of the parish. Quality-of-water data indicate that water from wells screened in the Chicot aquifer generally is suitable for some uses without treatment but would require treatment to be satisfactory for other uses. The temperature of the water ranges from 70° to 79°F. The lenticular sands of Pliocene and Miocene ages have not been used as a source of fresh ground water in Calcasieu Parish; however, north of the Houston River these formations contain fresh water, and the water contained in these formations in other parts of southwestern Louisiana is known to be soft and suitable for most purposes.

Louisiana↗
USGS1960

Geology and ground water in the Platte-Republican Rivers watershed and the Little Blue River basin above Angus, Nebraska, with a section on chemical quality of the ground water

This report describes an area of about 7,300 square miles in south-central Nebraska. Approximately one-fourth of the area, largely at its east end, consists of an undissected southeastward-sloping upland plain and is almost wholly irrigable; the remainder is in various stages of dissection and only parts of it are suitable for irrigation. Although some of the deeper lying bedrock formations are potential sources of water supply, they are not likely to be tapped in the near future because abundant supplies are available at shallower depth from semiconsolidated and unconsolidated deposits. The Ogallala formation of Tertiary (Pliocene) age consists of gravel, sand, silt, and volcanic ash, some layers of which are partly cemented. It was deposited by eastward-flowing streams, which formed a constructional plain above a surface into which the streams had previously eroded broad valleys. In turn, valleys were cut into the surface of the Ogallala before the overlying deposits of gravel, sand, silt, and clay of Quaternary (Pleistocene) age were laid down, also forming a constructional plain. During Recent time, streams have dissected the older deposits and have deposited thin alluvium in their valleys; also, several parts of the area have become mantled by wind-deposited sand. Because during Tertiary and Quaternary time the area repeatedly was the site of deposition and erosion, the thickness of all the stratigraphic units differs markedly from place to place. In general, however, the Ogallala formation thins eastward and in the central and eastern parts of the area is overlain by the eastward-thickening deposits of Pleistocene age. The maximum thickness of the Ogallala formation is about 500 feet, and the maximum thickness of the Pleistocene deposits is a little more than 300 feet. Each thins to a featheredge and is completely absent in parts of the area. The water-bearing part of the combined Tertiary and Pleistocene deposits is considered to be a single zone of saturation because the ground water, as it percolates southeastward beneath the area, moves out of the Tertiary and into the Quaternary deposits without apparent hindrance. The water that enters the area as underflow from the west is augmented within the area by water that infiltrates from the land surface. The principal sources of irrigating water are precipitation, seepage from canals and reservoirs, and applied irrigation water. Except for the water withdrawn through wells or discharged by natural processes where valleys have been cut into the zone of saturation, ground water leaves the area as underflow into the Platte River valley on the north, the Blue River drainage basin on the east, or the Republican River valley on the south. Part of the water used for irrigation and watering livestock and all the water used in rural and urban homes, in public buildings, and for industrial purposes is obtained from wells, To date (1952) there is no indication that the supply of ground water is being depleted faster than it is being replenished; instead, studies indicate that greater quantities can be withdrawn without causing an excessive decline of the water table. An increase of ground-water withdrawals to a sustainable maximum, however, will be possible only if the points of withdrawal are scattered fairly uniformly. It is estimated that annual withdrawals per township should not exceed 2,100 acre-feet where infiltrating precipitation is the only source of recharge, or 3,000 acre-feet where other sources of recharge are significant. Although perennial withdrawals of this amount could be sustained indefinitely, they would cause some lowering of the water table and eventually a decrease in the amount of water discharged from the area by natural means. The ground water is of the calcium bicarbonate type. In much of the area it is hard or very hard, and in places it contains excessive amounts of iron. In all other respects the water is chemically suitable for domesti

Nebraska↗
USGS1960

Geology and ground-water resources of Platte County, Wyoming, with a section on Chemical quality of the water

Platte County, Wyo., has an area of 2,114 square miles and, in 1950, had a population of 7,925; it lies within parts of two major physiographic provinces, the northern extension of the Southern Rocky Mountains and the northwestern part of the Great Plains. The Laramie Range and related structures lie along the western margin of the county and constitute the eastern limit of the Rocky Mountain Front Range. The High Plains section of the Great Plains province extends eastward from the Laramie Range over the remainder of the county. The original surface of the High Plains has been deeply eroded, and in the northeastern part of the county it is broken by the broad uplifted structural platform of the Hartville Hills. The North Platte River and its tributaries have entrenched their channels as much as 1,000 feet into the plains, leaving wide, very flat intervalley areas that are interrupted by a few isolated buttes and outlying ridges. Well-defined terraces, locally called the Wheatland Flats, have been formed in central Platte County. The climate is semiarid, the average annual precipitation being about 15 inches. Farming and stockraising are the principal occupations in the county. Most of the rocks exposed in the county are of Tertiary and Quaternary age, although rocks as old as Precambrian crop out locally. The Arikaree and Brule formations and younger deposits, including Tertiary ( ?) deposits (undifferentiated) and terrace, flood-plain, and other alluvial deposits, underlie more than two-thirds of the county. Mesozoic, Paleozoic, and Precambrian rocks crop out in the other third and underlie the younger rocks at great depths elsewhere. Small supplies of ground water adequate for domestic and stock use can be obtained from shallow wells in the Casper, Hartville, Cloverly, Brule, and Arikaree formations and in the terrace and flood-plain deposits. Small to moderate amounts of ground water can be obtained from the 'Converse sand' of the Hartville formation. Several flowing wells obtain water from this sand near Glendo. Moderate to large supplies of ground water adequate for small-scale irrigation or industrial uses or for public supply can be obtained from properly constructed wells penetrating thick saturated sections of the Arikaree formation and from the terrace and flood-plain deposits. Large supplies of ground water can be obtained from the flood-plain deposits of the North Platte River near Guernsey, where wells commonly yield more than 1,000 gpm (gallons per minute). The aquifers with greatest potential for additional groundwater development in Platte County, in decreasing order of importance, are the flood-plain deposits along the North Platte River and its tributaries, the Arikaree formation and terrace deposits in parts of the Wheatland Flats, and the 'Converse sand' in the general vicinity of Glendo.

Water Supply Paper↗
USGS1960

Geology and ground water in Napa and Sonoma Valleys, Napa and Sonoma Counties, California

Napa and Sonoma Valleys are adjacent alluvium-filled valleys about 40 miles northeast of San Francisco. They occupy alined and structurally controlled depressions in the northern Coast Ranges physiographic province and drain south into San Pablo Bay. The valleys are surrounded and underlain by unconsolidated marine and continental sediments and volcanic rocks of Pliocene and Pleistocene age, which are water bearing in large part and together make up relatively extensive ground-water basins. Napa Valley, the eastern valley, is the larger and has a valley-floor area of about 85 square miles. Sonoma Valley has a valley-floor area of about 35 square miles; in addition, about 10 square miles is unreclaimed tidal marsh. The rock units of Napa and Sonoma Valleys are divided into four classes on the basis of their distribution and relative capacity to yield water: (a) Consolidated virtually non-water-bearing chiefly sedimentary (some metamorphic) rocks that range in age from Jurassic ( ?) to Pliocene; (b) marine shale and sand of the Petaluma formation (Pliocene) and the Merced formation (Pliocene and Pleistocene) that do not crop out within Napa or Sonoma Valleys but perhaps are penetrated by some deep wells drilled in Sonoma Valley; (c) Sonoma volcanics of Pliocene age, parts of which are non-water-bearing and parts of which locally yield large quantities of water; and (d) unconsolidated alluvial deposits mainly of Quaternary age. The deposits of classes (c) and (d) contain the most important aquifers in the area. Most of the water used in these valleys is pumped from wells in the younger and older alluvium in the Huichica and Glen Ellen formations. and in the Sonoma volcanics. The principal aquifers are the younger and older alluvium. but appreciable quantities of water are pumped locally from the Sonoma volcanics. The Huichica and Glen Ellen formations yield water in small quantities and at most places supply water only for limited domestic uses. The younger alluvium COIM3ists of interbedded deposits of unconsolidated gravel. sand, silt. and. locally, peat. These deposits underlie the flood plains and channels of the Napa River. Sonoma Creek, and their tributaries, low alluvial fans or plains graded to these streams. and the tidal marshlands. The older alluvium of Napa and Sonoma Valleys is composed of lenticular deposits of unconsolidated and poorly sorted clay, silt. sand. and gravel. Where exposed, claypan or hardpan soil is characteristically developed at the surface. The Huichica formation is composed of deformed continental beds consisting mostly of yellow silt with some interbedded lenses of silt and gravel, and silt and boulders. At the base are beds of redeposited volcanic material, silt, clay, and lenses of coarse gravel and boulders. The Glen Ellen fcrmation consists of alluvial clay, silt, sand, and gravel in clearly stratified but generally lenticular beds. The Sonoma volcanics constitute a thick and highly variate series of continental volcanic rocks, including andesite, basalt, and minor rhyolite flows and interbedded coarse- to fine-grained pyroclastic tuff and breccia, redeposited tuff and pumice, and diatomaceous mud, silt, and sand. A prominent body of rhyolite flows and tuff with some obsidian and perlitic glass, called the St. Helena rhyolite member, occurs in the upper part. Estimated ground-water pumpage for all uses in the year 1949-50 was about 5,600 acre-feet in Napa Valley and about 2,400 acre-feet in Sonoma Valley. Of this quantity the amounts pumped for irrigation were about 2,900 and 1,900 acre-feet, respectively. Water levels in wells in the central parts of the valleys range from a few feet above the land surface to about 50 feet below, with an average of about 25 feet. The quality of the water in most wells is satisfactory for domestic use and irrigation. Locally at the southern end of the valley some contamination of the native waters is caused by the movement of salty wate

Water Supply Paper↗
USGS1961

Geologic features and ground-water storage capacity of the Sacramento Valley, California

The Sacramento Valley constitutes the northern and smaller arm of the Central Valley of California. It is about 150 miles long by about 30 miles wide; and its area is about 5,000 square miles. The Sacramento Valley is drained by the Sacramento River, the largest in California, which rises west of Mount Shasta and flows southward to join the San Joaquin River near Suisun Bay and discharges through San Francisco Bay to the Pacific. Most of the valley floor is suitable for growing crops, and under irrigation the land is highly productive. The Sacramento Valley is underlain by sediments transported from the surrounding mountains by the Sacramento River and its tributaries. The floor of the valley slopes southward from about 300 feet above sea level at the north end near Red Bluff to sea level at Suisun Bay. The Sutter Buttes, which are erosional remnants of an old volcano rise to 2,132 feet above sea level near the center of the valley. The valley floor is not a featureless plain but is characterized by various types of topography, which have been assigned to four principal groups: 1, low hills and dissected alluvial uplands; 2, low alluvial plains and fans; 3, flood plains and natural levees; and 4, flood basins; a fifth and relatively minor group consists of the tidal Islands of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, which are south of the principal area of investigation. The rocks that underlie the Sacramento Valley and the bordering mountains range from crystalline rocks of Paleozoic and Mesozoic age to unconsolidated alluvium of Recent age. These rocks have been subdivided into 20 geologic units which may be assigned to 2 broad categories: rocks that yield little water and rocks that yield water freely. The rocks of the first category are chiefly marine sedimentary rocks of Late Jurassic, Cretaceous, and Early Tertiary age and a basement complex of pre-Tertiary crystalline rocks. The rocks of the second category consist predominantly of nonmarine valley-filling sediments of late Tertiary and Quaternary age, which constitute the principal ground-water reservoir in the Sacramento Valley. The rocks that yield little or no water includes the following geologic units: 1, Basement complex of the Sierra Nevada (pre-Tertiary); 2, Shasta series (Lower Cretaceous); 3, Chico formation (Upper Cretaceous); 4, Paleocene series; 5, Eocene series (in part, water yielding); 6, basalt (Tertiary); 7, sedimentary rocks of volcanic origin on the west side of the Sacramento Valley (Tertiary, in part water yielding) ; 8, intrusive rhyolite and andesite and vent tuff of the Sutter Buttes (Pliocene); and 9, tuff-breccia of the Sutter Buttes (Pliocene, in part water yielding). The rocks that yield water freely, comprises the following geologic units: 1, Volcanic rocks from the Sierra Nevada (Eocene to Pliocene; in part yield little or no water); 2, Tuscan formation (Pliocene; in part yield little or no water); 3, Tehama formation (Pliocene); 4, Tehama formation and related continental sediments, undifferentiated (Pliocene and Pleistocene); 5, Laguna formation and related continental sediments (Pliocene and Pleistocene); 6, fanglomerate from the Cascade Range (Pleistocene); 7, Red Bluff formation (Pleistocene); 8, Victor formation and related deposits (Pleistocene); 9, alluvial-fan deposits (Pleistocene and Recent); 10, river deposits (Recent); and 11, flood-basin deposits (Recent). The volcanic rocks from the Sierra Nevada consist chiefly of andesitic and rhyolitic detritus. Most of these volcanic rocks are fragmental and were deposited either as mudflows or by streams. Their permeability is extremely variable, the poorly consolidated sandstone and conglomerate strata locally yield water copiously to wells, but the interbedded fine-grained and cemented strata are virtually impermeable and act as confining layers. The Tuscan formation, which occurs in the northeastern part of the valley, consists of fragmental andesitic and basaltic mate

Water Supply Paper↗
USGS1962

Water resources of the Utica-Rome area, New York

The Utica-Rome area is along the Mohawk River and New York State Erie (Barge) Canal about midway between Lake Ontario and Albany. It encompasses about 390 square miles centered around the industrial cities of Utica and Rome. The Mohawk River, its tributary West Canada Creek, and a system of reservoirs and diversions to maintain the flow in the barge-canal system, assure an ample water supply for the foreseeable needs of the area. The water from these sources is generally of good chemical quality requiring little treatment, although that from the Mohawk River is only fair and may require some treatment for sensitive industrial processes. Additional surface water is available from smaller streams in the area, particularly Oriskany and Sauquoit Creeks, but the water from these sources is hard, and has a dissolved-solids content of more than 250 ppm (parts per million). Ground water is available in moderate quantities from unconsolidated sand and gravel deposits in the river valleys and buried bedrock channels, and in small quantities from bedrock formations and less permeable unconsolidated deposits. The quality of water from sand and gravel, and bedrock ranges from good to poor. However, where necessary, the quality can be improved with treatment. The Mohawk River is the source of the largest quantity of water in the area. The flow of the stream below Delta Dam equals or exceeds 108 mgd (million gallons per day) 90 percent of the time, and at Little Falls it equals or exceeds 560 mgd 90 percent of the time. The flow between these two points is increased by additions from Oriskany, Sauquoit, and West Canada Creeks and from many smaller tributary streams. The flow is also increased by diversions from outside the area, from the Black and Chenango Rivers and West Canada Creek for improvement of navigation in the Erie (Barge) Canal, and from West Canada and East Branch Fish Creeks for the public supplies of Utica and Rome. Much of the public-supply water eventually reaches the river by way of sewerage and industrial waste-disposal systems. The total diversion from these sources averages more than 92 mgd. An estimated 18.5 mgd is withdrawn from the Mohawk River by industry, mostly for nonconsumptive uses. Floods in the Utica-Rome area are not a frequent problem owing to the use of regulatory measures. The major streams fluctuate through a narrow range in stage and generally only a narrow strip along the streams is subject to flooding. Water-bearing sand and gravel deposits in the major river valleys are the principal sources of ground water, especially where they are recharged by infiltration from streams. The most important potential source is the deposit of sand and gravel underlying the extensive plain adjacent to the Mohawk River between Delta Reservoir and Rome. Maximum sustained yields from these deposits are not known; but moderate quantities of water, 300 gpm (gallons per minute) or less from a single well, can probably be obtained from some parts of the sand plain area, particularly in the vicinity of a buried bedrock channel that extends southwestward from Delta Reservoir. Similar quantities of ground water probably can be withdrawn from some parts of the flood plain of the Mohawk River between Rome and Frankfort and from the sand and gravel deposits filling the valley of Ninemile Creek below Holland Patent. The deposits underlying the flood plain of the Mohawk River generally are fine grained but in places contain interstratified beds of coarser sand and gravel. The most productive part of the flood plain is at the east end near Frankfort. The deposits in Ninemile Creek valley also are generally fine grained; but where they are sufficiently thick, as over a buried bedrock valley southwest of Floyd, moderate quantities of water may be obtained. Small to moderate quantities of water (150 gpm or less from a single well) can be obtained from sand and gravel deposits in the bottoms of Oriskany and Sauquoit Creek vall

New York↗